When a milking animal, such as a cow, presents herself for milking it is important to ensure that the teat cups to be attached to the teats of the milking animal are clean and free of any condition that could contaminate the teats of the milking animal. Therefore, it is customary to clean the teat cups between milkings of milking animals, where either a cleaning liquid or pure water is used.
It is also customary, for the same reason, to clean the teats of each milking animal prior to the attachment of the teat cups. For teat cleaning, dedicated teat cleaning cups or brushes may be employed.
However, while such cleaning removes dirt from the teats and provides for an overall hygienic environment, there is nevertheless a risk of communicating infections, such as for instance mastitis, from one animal to another.
In Research Disclosure, April 2000, publication No. 444037, p. 530, it is proposed to spray the surfaces of the teat cups and the teat cleaning cups that potentially are exposed to the animals with hot steam to heat up the surfaces to a temperature, at which bacteria are killed. It is also proposed to illuminate the surfaces with UV light.
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,267,077 is described to employ a rinsing liquid with an additive, such as sodium hypochlorite, via supply lines and spray nozzles to clean and disinfect components of a milking machine, such as a cleaning member and a robot arm.
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,276,297 is disclosed a disinfecting device that disinfects those parts of a milking equipment and of a cleaning device which contact the teats and also usually the udder of an animal to be milked. The disinfecting device comprises an ultraviolet light source for destroying harmful bacteria by means of exposing them to UV radiation.